From the Midwest with Love
by lululight
Summary: Eggsy finds himself stranded in a boring flyover state during a mission in the United States. His plans to laze around his hotel room are interrupted by Chelsea (OC). Who knew the middle of nowhere could be so intense?
1. Chapter 1

Eggsy stared at the departure monitor and heaved a large sigh. His flight to Boston, MA from Kansas City, MO had a large red "CANCELLED" listed next to it. He normally did not fly anywhere commercial. Even if he did, Kingsman would be able to work around most anything and get him to his destination. The problem he was facing now had nothing to do with where he was going. Eggsy really had no business in Boston. In fact he would be catching a flight shortly after he arrived. His whole mission that he had been planning for months all revolved around this flight.

His target was a man by the name of Kevin Tanner. Kevin was a quiet and unremarkable resident of a small town in Missouri. The only thing that brought Eggsy to him was his recently deceased grandfather, Harold. Harold had been in possession of several interesting stolen documents that Kingsman needed to retrieve. Six months ago Harold died of cancer. After his death the documents were still unaccounted for.

Eggsy's team wasn't willing to give up on documents of this importance easily. They continued their research for months. After what seemed forever they had finally caught a break. It appeared that he might have entrusted the papers to Kevin. The good news hadn't lasted long. Kevin was an extreme introvert. He spent most of his time developing software. After weeks of looking into this man's life it seemed like trying to even a get a few minutes with him would be an impossibility. Kevin was a modern day hermit. He rarely went out and avoided people like the plague. Luckily Eggsy's persistence had paid off. He discovered that Kevin makes a trip to Boston twice a year to visit his sister. The cancelled flight was his. Eggsy had hoped he might be able to find a way in by slipping him some sodium pentothal. A trip to from Kansas City to Boston was almost 4 hours and would give him plenty of time to chat with his seatmate in first class. Eggsy was hoping to have what he needed in half that. Maybe he could sleep the rest of the way. He was still jetlagged.

A harsh ringing interrupted his gaze at the monitor. It was Merlin.

"I figured you would be calling soon. What the hell am I supposed to do now?"

"I have been tracking his phone GPS. Mr. Tanner is headed back home. Airline records confirm that he has booked the flight that leaves tomorrow afternoon. You'll just have to sit tight."

"Sit tight? Here?" Eggsy glanced out the window of the airport. The only thing in sight was a field. "Am I supposed to shack up with the cows or something?"

"Very funny. I booked you a room at the Marriot. A cab is on its way."

"Perfect. I guess I'll just spend the night with Pay Per View." He said sarcastically. He knew he shouldn't be annoyed with Merlin. Missouri just wasn't the ideal place to spend his first night in the States.

"Kansas City's not really that bad you know. Harry and I were holed up there on a mission for a few weeks."

"You had a mission _here_?" Eggsy asked incredulously.

"Well you're on a mission there aren't you?"

"Yeah. I just didn't think this place has enough going on for it to have another mission, past or future."

"Either way I really encourage you to explore a bit. The city is worth a look around."

"I don't know…" Eggsy looked out the window again. He was half expecting a tumbleweed to blow past.

"Trust me," Merlin said. "I know at least one place you'll like. Go to Oklahoma Joe's and get dinner. Harry loved that place. It was the only thing that that would gladly get him out of that suit of his." He chuckled at the memory.

"What do you mean get him out of his suit? Should I change?" He glanced down at his own suit confused.

"Just trust me. You don't want to wear anything that isn't washable." Merlin was laughing now. "I'll send you the details of your flight. Let me know how KC treats you." He hung up the phone laughing.

Eggsy sighed and made his way to baggage. This was not the greatest way too start a mission. He almost preferred someone shooting at him than this. At least it would be more exciting.


	2. Chapter 2

Two hours later Eggsy sat before possibly the greatest sandwich he had ever seen. He had been surprised when the taxi driver corrected him, explaining that Oklahoma Joe's had changed its name to Joe's Kansas City BBQ. He was even more surprised when the car pulled up to a gas station.

After an hour in line Eggsy began to wonder if Merlin was pulling his leg. Why would Harry ever go to a gas station for a good meal? All of his questions where answers when one of the cooks shoved a plate and a beer towards him. Mounds of juicy perfectly smoked meat were stacked on a bun that had been toasted and buttered. The rest of the plate was crowded with chips and slaw. One look at the plate and he realized what Merlin had been talking about. Even someone with impeccable manners like Harry would have a hard time not spilling this meal. He grabbed the first seat he could find and marveled at the food before him. He wasn't much of a cook and had been forced to live off of whatever he could find lately. An intense case like this didn't leave much room for nice dinners in his schedule. The large plate of meat, potatoes, and slaw was just what the doctor ordered.

He slowly bit into the sandwich savoring the juices that slowly dripped from his lips as he chewed. This was heaven. He was so absorbed in his meal that he did not notice that people were giving him annoyed glances. Seating was first come first serve and he had taken a two person table. The small gas station was quickly filling up. Two women started arguing about who had claimed the largest table first. Eggsy didn't even notice.

"May I sit here?" A sweet female voice interrupted his reverie. He jerked his head around.

"What?" He was looking at a young woman holding a plate identical to his. She looked annoyed.

"May I sit here? There isn't any single seating left and I'm afraid that if I take a table to myself like you have I'll start a riot." As if to illustrate her point the one of the two arguing woman stomped away angrily with her food. She was mumbling explicatives.

"Oh," He looked down at his table realizing his mistake. "Sure, yeah, that's alright." She sidled into the seat across from him.

"Thanks." She said with a smile.

"Anytime." He returned her smiled and turned back to his sandwich.

"So," She picked up her own sandwich. "Where are you from?"

"Shhhhh." Eggsy said with his eyes closed.

"What?"

"I'm having a religious experience with this food." He slowly took another bite. Eggsy knew he should have known better than to second guess Harry. This place was amazing.

"You know it tastes even better with the sauce on it." The girl said sarcastically.

"Huh?" Eggsy looked up again.

"The sauce." She pointed to a bottle on the table. "You can't have it without the sauce." He poured out enough for an exploratory bite. He wasn't aware that this food could get better but it just did. Eggsy munched with his eyes half closed in pleasure for a few minutes. The girl laughed.

"Do you want me to leave you two alone?" She laughed again. He couldn't help but laugh with her.

"Yeah, that would be nice. Maybe we should book a room together." He took a large slobbery bite. BBQ sauce dripped down his chin. She rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to her meal. Eggsy studied her. Now that he was looking she was really quite attractive, dirty blonde hair, nice legs. She had a great laugh too. Her style seemed pretty laid back in her sundress dress and clunky boots. The boots were a little weird though, probably some sort of fashion statement that he wasn't aware of yet.

"Hey, what's your name?"

"Chelsea." She smiled shyly. "What's yours?"

"You can call me Eggsy." He tried to be charming but was having a difficult time accomplishing that while chowing down on his large meal.

"Eggsy? That's different. So what brings you here?" She asked absently. He wasn't sure if she was trying to play cool or if she really wasn't that interested.

"What makes you think I'm not from here?" He asked jokingly. She shot him a coy smile. Oh yeah, she was definitely just keeping her cool.

"Oh come on. Do you want me to say it?" she teased him. She took another bite and licked a dab of sauce off her finger.

"I know, I know. It's the accent." He tried to act embarrassed but he wondered if it was true that American girls found it sexy. She shook her head.

"Well that was a dead giveaway but I saw you ordering. You had no idea what you were doing."

"Oh you were watching me, eh?" He tried to sound confident but inside he was thrilled that she had watched him.

"Well…I," she turned three shades darker. Eggsy was enjoying her embarrassment. "It was a long line and I noticed the out of towner that didn't know how to order. You were holding everything up." She finished smugly. It was his turn to blush. He took a sip of the beer he ordered and choked.

"Oh God." He coughed.

"What?" She looked alarmed.

"Your beer over here is shit." He coughed again. She rolled her eyes.

"Of course that stuff is. If you want something that tastes like anything you gotta order the local stuff.

"How was I supposed to know what was local? It all looked the same to me!"

"Trust me, try some Boulevard next time, or Mother's if you can get it." She turned the bottle around and squinted at the label. "Honestly though, you could order anything and it would be better than this."

"I'll just take your word for it." He winced as he took another sip. It tasted like very weird carbonated water. They ate in silence for a few minutes.

"You know," He made his voice soft. "You're too pretty to be eating alone." It was a pick up line and they both knew it but he pulled it off.

"I could say the same about you." She dipped a chip in sauce and took a bite.

"What, you calling me pretty?" He asked with mock offense

"That's what I said didn't I? What? You don't think so?"

"I think devastatingly handsome would be a better description." She snorted at his words.

" _Devastatingly handsome._ Sure, you go ahead and believe that." Even though she was laughing at him Eggsy knew she probably agreed. He had seen her checking him out between bites.

"So…" He took a deep breath and after a moment's deliberation he decided to go for it. "What is your lovely self doing this evening?" He tried to spread the gentlemanly attitude on thick but she laughed even harder.

"Seriously that is such a line."

"I was just thinking," He spoke fast, trying to recover. "That instead of calling another cab you could give me a ride back to my hotel."

"And why on earth would I want to do that?" Her eyes sparkled. She knew she had the upper hand in this conversation. Eggsy wasn't sure if he liked that or not.

"Because I would pay you back with a drink. Whatever drink you like! I'll probably need you to tell me what beer to order." It was a bit of a lame proposal but it was a good save. She popped the last chip into her moth and chewed thoughtfully. He tried not to hold his breathe while he waited for her answer.

"Make it two drinks."


	3. Chapter 3

Several hours ago Eggsy had been annoyed with his fight delay. Now that he was four beers into his conversation with Chelsea he began to think that maybe this was just the break he had needed. The Tanner case had really gotten to him. It had been weeks since he fully relaxed. Eggsy liked spending time with Chelsea. He was a little sad that this was last and only time they spent together. He felt that she would be pretty great if he had time to really know her but that just wasn't possible. At the moment he was content with what would be a fun single memory of a fantastic evening (hopefully night) that they would spend together.

"Come on," He argued. "Just one more drink! You've been nursing that thing for at least an hour now." He made to signal the bartender.

"No no," She pushed his hand down. "The deal was only two drinks." She tipped the last of her beer into her mouth. "So you agree that not all the beer is bad here right?"

"Okay so this stuff isn't bad per say." He drained the rest of his bottle. "But I'm not about to betray my country and say it's better."

"Fine, fine. As long as you at least don't trash it my work is done."

"You sure you won't let me buy you another drink?"

"Yeah, I got work in the morning." She shrugged. They sat awkwardly for a few seconds. Without a drink there was no reason for her to stay. Eggsy had hoped that they might continue this in a much more intimate fashion and was getting the sense that she did too. He could tell something was holding her back. After some deliberation he slid his body closer to hers.

"You don't have to go." He whispered in her ear. A few of her hairs tickled his nose. She looked unsure.

"No, I really should. It's getting late." She made to leave but he gently pulled her closer.

"I won't make you stay, but I just want you to look me in the eyes and say you actually want to leave." He knew he was laying it on thick but he only had one shot at this. Might has well pull out all the stops. She turned to him. He knew that she wasn't going home.

"I don't normally do this." She leaned in for a kiss.

The kiss was much more intense than he had expected. It seemed that she had been holding back a lot more than he thought. His hands unconsciously moved to her breasts as her lips parted further. She pulled slightly away and laughed softly.

"We're in public."

"So?"

"So maybe we should take this to your room." She slid out of her chair and gave him a sexy smile.

He had to force himself to walk instead of run after her.

Eggsy laid in bed afterwards. She was mostly asleep and he wanted her to stay. She seemed quite content. The sex had been good there was no denying that. He felt a little guilty. Since he was technically still on a mission this sort of thing was normally frowned up on. He was starting to realize why. He lay staring at the ceiling, thinking. He felt her stir next to him.

"Do you want me to go?" She asked softly. Her hair fell around her bare shoulders.

"No." He put and arm around her and nuzzled his nose into her hair. He had made his decision. "Why are you being so coy?" he asked. She let out a soft airy laugh.

"I hardly think I'm being coy." She rolled over to face him. She hesitated, his face had changed.

"Stop lying love." The arm that wasn't around her suddenly clasped a pair of handcuffs around her wrists. She gave a startled cry and tried to jerk away but he held her down tight.

"Who are you working for?"


	4. Chapter 4

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Chelsea asked bewildered.

"I think you know what the fuck I'm talking about." Eggsy sounded confident but inside he felt a twinge of uncertainty. He was going solely on a gut feeling on this point. Most people wouldn't leave something thing like this up to just a hunch but a Kingsman was different. A Kingsman had no choice.

"Okay, Okay." She tugged at her cuffs and rolled her eyes. "Very funny, just uncuff me."

"You haven't answered my question."

"Listen, the gig is up. Ha ha fuckity ha. Just uncuff me so I can leave."

"This isn't a joke. It's not supposed to be funny."

"Well at this point I'd don't really think it is. My god, you seemed too normal to have such a twisted send of humor." She looked up at him. Her eyes were started to show a glint of panic. "Please, just get these off." He shook his head.

"I'm completely serious about this." He pulled out the one and only chair in his crappy hotel room and set it in front of the bed. "I have to leave here at six in order to catch my flight so you better start talking." He sat heavily into the chair and stared at her expectantly.

"I work for a fucking dry wall company. I take their messages and shit." She tried to sound sarcastic but there was a definite edge to her voice now.

"That's not what I'm asking." He calmly picked a sheet up off the floor and handed it to her. "Cover yourself. You may be a liar but you still have a right to some dignity."

"Oh great! You decided that you should show your manners while I'm fucking handcuffed" She exclaimed as she awkwardly tried to wrap the sheet around herself with bound hands. "That makes everything better doesn't it?"

"Well yes. Manners maketh man after all."

"What is that? Some sort of movie quote you're hoping will make you sound cool?" Eggsy smiled at her words.

"Oh trust me. This is no movie."

"Well it seems like one." She struggled with her cuffs. "And I don't know why you think I'm lying. Cause I'm not!"

"Oh come on. Everyone lies, love."

"What on earth makes you think I am lying? You have known me for like what? Five hours?"

"Five and a half I think."

"Exactly! And in that time you seem pretty damn sure that I am lying."

"That's cause you are." He slid his laptop of the desk and opened it. "You're working for someone. Just tell me who and we might be able to get out of this without me killing you."

"Killing me?" Chelsea's face immediately drained of color. Her voice has lost all of its annoyance and sarcasm. She was afraid. "Wait, please." She glanced around the room desperately. "Why do you think I am working for someone?"

"Your eyes."

"My eyes? What kind of bullshit is that?"

"You glanced around the room very quickly when we entered. I was so into you I barely registered it as odd, and why would I?" He was typing on his laptop. "I've seen agents do it a thousand times. You were casing this room. Quickly memorizing your surroundings."

"Casing the room?" She asked breathlessly. She was stunned. Eggsy wasn't sure if she was shocked because he was right or because he was way off.

"Yes, and then I realized that wasn't the first time you did it. You did it at every new place you entered. Even in the cab. That's when I started kicking myself at how obviously set up our meeting had been."

"That was chance!" Chelsea said desperately. "Pure chance!"

"It wasn't chance."

"What proof do you have? Just my eyes moving? What the fuck kind of proof is that?" She screamed the last sentence as she thrashed her legs. Chelsea was pissed. He continued typing his message to Merlin. Even though he was resolved in his conclusion he couldn't help but wonder…What if he was completely wrong?


	5. Chapter 5

Eggsy's cell vibrated. He glanced at the caller ID and answered it. "About time you called me Merlin. I have a situation here."

"Christ it's three in the morning." Merlin's voice sounded groggy. "You should be glad I called at all. What kind of situation could you have gotten into at a hotel? If you got drunk and did something stupid so help me…"

"Did you even read the message I sent you? I'm not drunk. I have a fucking real situation here so can you wake up and listen?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm all ears."

"There is a girl here." Eggsy glanced at Chelsea. She purposed turned away from him. "I think something is up with her."

"What kind of nonsense is that? You brought a girl back to your room and you want to tell me? Just spill out what you're thinking. It's too early to beat around the bush." Merlin yawned during his last sentence.

"Fine, so this girl is a spy. I'm sure of it. She's working for someone."

"Working for someone?" Merlin suddenly sounded alert. "How do you know?"

"Well it's a hunch for the moment. I did bring her back to my room but then I realized something was off and…" Eggsy's voice trailed away. He looked back at Chelsea and realized how reckless he had been to get into this situation.

"She's tied up to the bed isn't she?"

"Well, um…"

"Oh for Christ's sake. Have you even found some real evidence yet?"

"Well, I was getting to that!" Eggsy yelled defensively. "I just wanted to make sure she wouldn't kill me first."

"Alright, calm down." Merlin paused, thinking. "Look through her stuff. If she is working for someone she'll have at least a gps or comm device on her."

"Right, okay." Eggsy grabbed her purse and started rifling through the contents.

"Hey!" Chelsea broke her silence. "You can't do that!" Eggsy ignored her. He tossed her bag onto the floor and grabbed her dress, running the fabric between her hands.

"Fuck." He muttered as he frantically grabbed her boots. He checked the inside and found nothing.

"Find anything?" Merlin asked.

"Well, not yet…"

"You better start looking harder! If you are wrong about this…"

"I'm not wrong! I know I'm not!" Eggsy trusted his gut but was starting to worry. What if he was wrong? What if he was right but couldn't prove it?

"Eggsy if you don't find anything we're going to have to call someone to handle this mess. Your plane leaves in a few hours and you _cannot_ miss it. Do you hear me?"

"I hear you! Just let me think!" Eggsy starting running through everything in his head. She came up to him while he was eating and sat down. What was his first impression? He thought she was cute. He liked her dress and thought she had great legs. Except her boots were weird. He jerked his head up and grabbed the boots. They had an especially thick heel and sole. He had passed it off as some weird fashion statement.

"Eggsy?" Merlin's voice came from the forgotten phone on the table.

"Just a second!" He flipped out a knife and pried the heel loose.

"What are you doing?" Chelsea yelled frantically from the bed. "You can't do that! Those are new!"

"And butt ugly if you ask me." Eggsy casually flipped off the heel. "I honestly couldn't figure out why a pretty girl like you would wear these but now it makes sense." He lifted a small electronic device from inside the heel with his knife.

"Merlin bring up the video chat. You gotta see this."


	6. Chapter 6

Author's Note: Not sure if I should pursue this or keep it as a short story. Any thoughts? Thanks for reading!

"Oh hell." Merlin was looking severely distressed at the small device Eggsy was showing him. Eggsy frowned in confusion.

"What? Do you not know what it is?"

"No, I know exactly what it is. I even know who made it."

"Then what's the problem?"

"Well…." Merlin sat back heavily into his chair and heaved a big sigh. "You remember how I said that Harry and I had a mission there a while back?"

"Yes," Eggsy was liking this conversation less and less.

"We were checking out a rogue organization. I think they called themselves the Underground Railroad, just like the historical organization. You remember them?"

"Not 'just like'." Eggsy jumped at Chelsea's voice behind him. He had almost forgotten she was there. She sighed and sunk into the bed looking defeated. "We are the underground railroad. We've just expanded and gotten better at hiding."

"Fine," Merlin continued. "They are the underground railroad. Once slavery was abolished they started accepting other candidates that needed to escape to a safe area. Some private funding in the 1980's helped them fully expand. They hide everyone they deem fit: political refugees, government whistleblowers, even abuse victims."

"So….." Eggsy looked from Chelsea to Merlin. "That doesn't so sound bad. Why did you have a mission here?" Merlin shifted in his seat. He looked uncomfortable.

"We wanted to confirm that they had no corrupt or malicious intentions."

"And did they?"

"No, it looks to be a very clean organization." Eggsy stared blankly at the screen for a few moments after Merlin's words.

"So I just captured someone who works for a friendly organization."

"That seems to sum it up, yes." Merlin directed his attention to the half-dressed and handcuffed Chelsea. "I'm so sorry for this confusion. He wasn't supposed to be here or we would have briefed him. I can speak to your…."

"Just uncuff me and call it a night." Chelsea interrupted. "I would really rather not get my supervisor involved in this…for obvious reasons."

"Of course." Merlin nodded to Eggsy. "Eggsy…."

"What?" He still seemed lost in thought.

"Un-cuff her please?"

"Oh right!" He was jerked out of his thoughts. He pulled keys from his bag and quickly un-cuffed Chelsea from the bed. She dove for her clothes and rushed into the small adjoining bathroom, slamming the door. Eggsy groaned and put his face in his hands.

"I'm fucked aren't I?"

"Not necessarily. You were not briefed on the situation. There will probably be an internal review but I can't see it coming to anything." Merlin's fingers started whizzing across the keyboard. "I'll write up a quick report and you'll be set to catch that plane in a few hours."

"I feel like such an idiot."

"You couldn't have known." Merlin stopped typing and glanced at Eggsy. "You probably shouldn't have slept with her though. That will be an interesting topic with the review board."

"Would you have said no to that?" Eggsy asked lifting his head off his hands.

"Probably not." Merlin sniggered. "Now get her out of there and be sure you are a perfect gentleman about it. Call me when you are at the airport." The video feed ended.

Eggsy put his face back in his hands. He felt like the world's biggest idiot. He really shouldn't have slept with her. In fact he shouldn't have even invited her back for drinks. His pity party was cut short as Chelsea emerged from the bathroom.

"I'll be leaving."

"Right, I'll get the door!" Eggsy jumped up.

"I can't get it myself thank you." She shot him a look that was supposed to be cold but Eggsy felt some warmth behind it. He decided to jump out and take a risk.

"Can I ask you a question?"

"I suppose." She looked guarded but curious. He took a deep breath.

"Was drinks and sex part of the plan from the beginning?"

"Not really." She was intentionally looking anywhere but his face.

"They why did you do it?"

"Listen," She finally made eye contact with him. "Not all organizations have the great benefits that the Kingsmen have. We are low on funds. I don't get the greatest pay, my health insurance is shitty so…" She broke off looking exasperated. "I was assigned just to check you out and assess your mission. When I found some cute foreign spy hitting on me it was a little too hard to resist making my own benefits." She slowing broke into a smile. "So I'll make you a deal. You pretend like this didn't happen and maybe, just maybe you can look me up the next time you're stateside."

"Are you fucking serious?" Eggsy could not believe his luck.

"Yup, but you so owe me." Her smile was coy. "But next time the hand cuffs might be one you." She winked and shut the door in his face.


End file.
